We hear from two groups of students exploring topics in library and information studies. The first focuses on intersections of LBGTQ people, queer theory, and libraries --- especially cataloging. Another group thinks about how public lands and public libraries relate to each other as resources for the public good and human wellbeing. 

An interview with Peg Cook, interim library director at Elmhurst College, on academic libraries now, followed by a discussion of the misinformation in the online information ecosystem. 

Student discussions of the embeddedness of libraries and archives within imperial power, with emphasis on indigenous lands and knowledges. Followed by a reflection on literature for youth and Banned Books Week 2020.

We launch season 3 of the Eyes Cool Podcast and everything around here is new, new, new! New students, a new episode format for this season, and, today, an interview with new iSchool professor Jacob Thebault-Spieker. 

Some relevant links: Worlds Without End: http://www.worldswithoutend.com/ Locus Mag: https://locusmag.com/

Links: N.K. Jemisin's Dream Worlds https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/01/27/nk-jemisins-dream-worlds  Den of Geek - Top New Fantasy Books https://www.denofgeek.com/books/top-new-fantasy-books-2020/   World Fantasy Awards http://www.worldfantasy.org/world-fantasy-awards%e2%84%a0-2019/  Nebula Awards https://nebulas.sfwa.org/   Hugo Awards controversy https://www.vox.com/2018/8/21/17763260/n-k-jemisin-hugo-awards-broken-earth-sad-puppies  The Problem of Innocence in the Dark Fantastic http://thedarkfantastic.blogspot.com/2014/07/why-is-rue-little-black-girl-problem-of.html?m=1  How the Book Biz is Coping with Coronavirus https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/82780-coping-with-the-coronavirus.html 

Our recommendations/favs: From Mia: M.C. Beaton: Agatha Raisin Mystery Series Kathleen Ernst: Chloe Ellefson Mystery Series Kerry Greenwood: Phryne Fisher Mystery Series Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None and Hercule Poirot mysteries Ashley Weaver: The Amory Ames Mysteries Amy Stewart: Kopp Sisters Mysteries Meg Cabot: Heather Wells Mysteries Reality Check by Peter Abrahams (YA crossover) From my grandma: M.C. Beaton, William Kent Krueger, Alexander McCall Smith From my husband: Mr. Mercedes and The Outsider by Stephen King From friends: Alex Kava’s books TV/Movies: Midsomer Murders, Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, Poirot (Suchet), And Then There Were None (2015) From Peg: Library Co-worker: Alexander McCall Smith - Ladies #1 Detective Agency Patron who farms by day, reads at night: Craig Johnson - Walt Longmire series Patron who retired from Nat’l Weather Service: Anne Perry Audio Citation “Thinking about Murder.” Royalty Free Stock Audio, Special Effects and More, www.audioblocks.com/stock-audio/thinking-about-murder-sgawrsy6ipbk0wyaoly.html.

Bibliography and Notes  The Wizard of Lies: Bernie Madoff and the Death of Trust by Diana B. Henriques  Alice Diamond and the Forty Elephants: The Female Gang That Terrorized London by Brian McDonald  Watching the Detectives: Crime Programming, Fear of Crime, and Attitudes About the Criminal Justice System by Lisa A. Kort-Butler and Kelley J. Sittner Hartshorn (The Sociological Quarterly vol. 52 issue 1)  Why Do Women Love True Crime? by Kate Tuttle (The New York Times, 15 July 2019)  Savage Appetites: Four True Stories of Women, Crime, and Obsession by Rachel Monroe  Why Are Women Obsessed with True Crime? Rachel Monroe Has Some Answers by J. Oliver Conroy (The Guardian, 20 August 2019)  Captured by True Crime: Why Are Women Drawn to Tales of Rape, Murder, and Serial Killers? by Amanda M. Vicary and R. Chris Fraley (Social Psychological and Personality Science, vol. 1 issue 1)  Why Do We Find True Crime Fascinating? ‘Savage Appetites’ Looks For An Answer by Ilana Masad (NPR, 20 August 2019)  Language, Ideology, and Identity in Serial Killer Narratives by Christiana Gregoriou  Book Review: Language, Ideology, and Identity in Serial Killer Narratives by Athina Karatzogianni (Language and Literature: International Journal of Stylistics, vol. 22 issue 2)  The Stranger Beside Me: The Inside Story of Serial Killer Ted Bundy by Ann Rule  Escape by Carolyn Jessop and Laura Palmer The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America by Erik Larson The Monster of Florence: A True Story by Douglas Preston and Mario Spezi  I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer by Michelle McNamara  Small Sacrifices by Ann Rule  Serial (podcast by Sarah Koenig)  My Favorite Murder (podcast by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark)  And That’s Why We Drink (podcast by Christine Schiefer and Em Schulz)  Let’s Go To Court (podcast by Brandi Egan and Kristin Caruso)  What Should I Read Next? (program by The New York Public Library)  American Fire: Love, Arson, and Life in a Vanishing Land by Monica Hesse  American Predator: The Hunt for the Most Meticulous Serial Killer of the 21st Century by Maureen Callahan  A False Report: A True Story of Rape in America by T. Christian Miller and Ken Armstrong  Highway of Tears: A True Story of Racism, Indifference, and the Pursuit of Justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls by Jessica McDiarmid  Ask a Librarian Chat (service by University of Wisconsin-Madison library system)  Corrections  Charlotte described The Devil in the White City as being about the “1983 World’s Fair.” The Devil in the White City chronicles the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. 

We launch season two - which takes a series of deep dives into genres popular with adult readers - with an episode about Romance Novels! Links to resources mentioned in the episode: https://smartbitchestrashybooks.com/ https://www.claireryanauthor.com/blog/2019/12/27/the-implosion-of-the-rwa http://www.frowl.org/worstbestsellers/readers-advisory-episode-96-a-princess-in-theory/ https://bellwetherfriends.wordpress.com/2018/08/31/episode-92-we-need-inclusive-romance/ https://bellwetherfriends.wordpress.com/2016/07/21/episode-41-we-love-historical-romance/ https://www.mindyklasky.com/index.php/for-writers/romance-tropes/ http://www.frowl.org/worstbestsellers/fanfiction-101/

Season Two of EYES COOL PODCAST is coming soon! This season we take a series of deep dives into genres that are popular with adult readers from romance to true crime and everything in between. We're embedded in a course called Reading Interests of Adults where we'll get a taste of what interests adult readers, how and why we read together, and how industry factors like reviews and recommendation systems affect the literary scene.  Launching soon, episode one focuses on Romance Novels!